Kotuku Quintet present Opulence, 21 September

Kotuku Quintet Simon Ansell (violin), John Seager (violin), Judith Gust (viola), Sally-Anne Brown (cello), Louise Webster (piano). The Kotuku Quintet returns with the Piano quintet in F minor, op. 34 by Johannes Brahms. Described as his greatest piece of chamber music it is probably the most frequently performed of his chamber works. Brahms was a demanding self-critic, and the quintet went through several iterations, beginning life as a string quintet, then transcribed into a sonata for two pianos before ending as a work for piano and string quartet. Here, the dual sides of his musical nature – dark, turbulent romanticism and rigorous classicism – were in their most fruitful conflict and balance, the music covering a wide spectrum of moods: majesty, serenity, tension, foreboding, anger and joy. Piano Quintet in F minor, Op. 34 Johannes Brahms 1. Allegro non troppo 2. Andante, un poco adagio 3. Scherzo: Allegro 4. Finale: Poco sostenuto – Allegro non troppo – Presto, non troppo